In this episode, hosts Jay Duffy and Morgan Watson interview the legendary voice of the Baltimore Ravens, Emmy-winning sportscaster, leadership and communication coach, and founder of the Sandusky Group, Gerry Sandusky.
Gerry, who humorously describes the feeling of playing a "pickup game with an NBA player" when doing a podcast, shares the often non-linear and accidental path that led him from a college finance major to a four-decade career in broadcasting and consulting. He offers powerful insights on leadership, communication, and authenticity.
Key Discussion Points:
- The Accidental Career: Gerry shares the roundabout story of how a career counselor's question led him to enroll in broadcasting school, land an unpaid internship, and eventually break into the industry by filling in for no-show editors, producers, and reporters.
- Finding Your Voice: He explains that finding your voice is a gradual process, often accelerated by pressure. His need to ad-lib early in his career prevented him from becoming a "prisoner to the prompter" and taught him to communicate as if speaking to just one person.
- The Importance of Connection: Gerry discusses the power of emotional connection, citing his spontaneous on-air phrase, "The hay's in the barn", which instantly connected with the audience and became part of his identity. He stresses that emotional connection must come first; intellectual connection will follow.
